YesTor

And that is exactly the problem. If Heljan were to tackle the Class 40 in OO, they'd be highly likely to simply shrink the O gauge version from their range - including its inherent flaws - as has happened with the 45. There are indeed moments when you sit back and pray that Heljan would leave some of the more popular diesel types well alone; after all, how many years did we wait for an OO gauge Class 33 with a correct-shaped roof; the 47 wasn't anywhere near correct first time around, and I'm not convinced that the second offering is substantially improved either; and now we have the 45. On the O gauge front, the Class 40 and 37 look distinctly 'wrong' from the front end view - Heljan really do not seem to be able to capture the windscreen areas of these 'bonnet' designs convincingly. The 56 and 60 again look distinctly 'off' at first glance - odd angles around the windscreen areas on the latter, a general look of 'quirkiness' etc etc. Virtually the whole range appears to be a mish-mash of errors that could have been avoided. On a positive note and sure, there are some extremely impressive diesel shunters that have been produced, and the Class 26 is good (albeit not without errors), so too the Class 128. The thing I like about many of Heljan's models is that they do have presence and always appear visually 'weighty', something that some of the other manufacturers fall down on slightly. It's just a shame that the R&D dept is somewhat lacking in ability/willingness to get things right from the offset and certainly explains why I sadly seem to have so few Heljan models in my collection. Al

They are, however this issue was highlighted around 2 years ago when the first samples appeared, whereby images/photos from all angles clearly show the blunder. All seemingly ignored, of course. A monumental shame, because I feel that the nose/bonnet shape itself actually captures the 'stubby' look of the prototype far better than the Bachmann model. Best Al

Oh yes, I see what you mean. Not difficult to correct, but shouldn't really be an issue on a second run of a batch of liveries that were generally horribly wrong in the first instance... 😑 I guess the more looming question is have the shades been corrected for rail blue, warning yellow, Intercity dark and light grey etc... 🤨

Fair point, but to return to the OP's original question none of this is a reason for anyone not to accept payment via bank transfer. Okay, call the bank with the sort code, account number, amount and the person/company's name and make the payment. Job done. Companies make their payment information available all of the time pretty much at the bottom of every invoice or household bill, it really isn't classified information. 🙈

Have you tried Shawplan?

Yes, same here and there's a method in the apparent madness of this: Firstly, the funds do not leave the sender's account until the cheque is processed, so there will be a delay in those funds leaving the sender's account. Secondly, some of those cheques simply won't be processed at all, as people have the potential to lose or forget to bank cheques, particularly if they are of lesser amounts. Also, cheques expire, so again if not processed in time will likely not be honoured - that is certainly the case with DVLA for sure, from experience. Either way, all of these additional 'hurdles' for the recipient add up to funds remaining in the sender's account. Imagine even a small percentage of unprocessed car tax refunds each year and it soon mounts up in DVLA's coughers... 🤔

That could potentially be the case for some senders, however the question was with regard to a supplier receiving payments. As such, any private individual or organization in possession of a bank account can receive payment via bank transfer - all that is needed are the sort code and account number, both of which are standard with all bank accounts and have been since the beginning of time. In fact, even a sender with no online access or debit card can send a payment via bank transfer, all you need to do is telephone your bank and quote the recipient's sort code, account number and the amount that you wish to send and that's it, no need to mess around with cheques at all. Best Al

Do people still own cheque books? 😬

Hopefully not Heljan... 🤨

I have to echo this viewpoint. With so many outstanding new models being released (more than most can afford in one hit?), and standards currently so high, there simply isn't room for new models with glaring shape errors, especially when those errors are highlighted so early in the production process. And unfortunately, as much as I would like a definitive 'Peak' well, sadly the Heljan offering is nowhere near, for the above reasons. Best Al

Hi Danny I think you might be referring to the Bachmann Metalair PCA? Best Al

Ah okay, that's what I had in mind. Thanks for clarifying. cheers Al

Hi Fran With all due respect, last week someone at AS said that there was "no rush" to order... but now it's a "limited production run"? Which is it please? And when do I need to order by? thank you kindly... Al

Hi Fran Just an observation, as I'm pretty sure I read that the bodyside 'polo mints' were to be etched fittings? Or did this change? Best Al

It's a sign of the times unfortunately and doesn't just apply to model railways; alongside the accompanying "I must have it and I must have it now" mindset... It's all quite unhealthy really. 😶 Without wishing to be a Negative Nancy, I sincerely hope that there aren't any unexpected production delays! Haven't some of the existing range been shifted back until 2023 release dates... 😬🥴

Likewise. And also depending on the font used, a similar rule applied for the 'pointed' letters of the alphabet, eg. A, N, M, V, W.

I guess that depends - some customers clearly possess the mentality for such things. Whilst of course I cannot speak for everyone, however I tend to be the exact opposite - ie. the first question to myself is, why do I need to pay a fee in order to receive a bundle of 'merchandise' that I likely have no use for, or would have had no intention of ever acquiring had it not been for 'the club'? And all to have the 'prestigious' [*cough*] opportunity to purchase an 'exclusive' model at an inflated price? No thanks. At the end of the day, if models become too tiresome and expensive to pin down then for me the 'hobby' begins to feel like hard work, at which point it's all a bit of a turn-off - which means I'm more likely to throw my hard-earned cash in an alternative direction. Others may disagree, naturally. My interests are solely in obtainable, high quality models. Collectors clubs, limited edition certificates, fancy bits of paper and the like? I'm no longer sixteen years of age and have no need for such gimmicks. Call me old-fashioned, but just keep things simple by keeping the great models flowing, it's all good... Al

Personally, I'm not fussed about having to feel as though I'm part of any 'exclusive' collective - whether it's model railways or otherwise. Whatever the model, I have no concern as to whether there are 400 or 4000 in circulation - I'm making the purchase for the model alone, certainly not any feeling of exclusivity. Whilst I'm naturally pleased I managed to order a set of these fabulous-looking coaches, it is only by chance that I happened to be at home this afternoon - a standard day at work and I would have missed out - and I'd imagine there might be a few in this very boat later on. But hey, if that makes some folk feel better for having that 'fuzzy feeling of exclusivity', then so be it... but I'd feel far better knowing that everyone who wanted one had perhaps managed to buy a set. Just my two-penneth... On a more positive note, I'm sure these will be awesome coaches and am very much looking forward to them later in the year. Best Al

Plus I found that the Bachmann 66 never quite sat correctly on its bogies - I can't recall ever having one out-the-box that wasn't slumped at one end, or one side. A niggle some might say - for others such as myself, a deal-breaker - but it is indeed that kind of thing that either gives a model presence, or not. Al

Agree on both the above. Also, the bodyshell itself isn't the most precise/sharpest of mouldings by today's standards, with some quite poor definition with regard to many of the details.

I seem to recall it being mentioned by one of the Accurascale crew in one of their topics on here, although don't ask me which topic as I can't remember...

Quite a few, actually...

Ahh right, maybe Brian hasn't got as far as 68033 yet? I know he's done many of the earlier ones as I've purchased some of those myself - and very, very nice they are too. Maybe he plans on getting to them, who can say...

I would guess at Shawplan?

Perhaps a light dab of grease on the axle bearing might resolve? 🙂 cheers Al